© by Rakesh Chandra Books are ornaments on my body,
And knowledge is the covering on my soul;
Ideas are floating in my vacuous mind,
In the shape of dancing alphabets;
With pages half inscribed and half empty,
My life is just an open book.

Every cell of my body is made
Of a letter alive to the sensations
Of the outside world; my heart
Flutters with the ruffles of creamy pages
Of the books lying over my body;

Books are reminder of very important
Lesson that letters will survive forever,
While my frail body one day
Will certainly vanish into thin air;
I wish I could fly like letters
In the face of adversities of life!


Mr. Chandra's poem was one of 9 other "Best Entries" picked from ILA Magazine's Monthly Prompt in January.